The New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS) is planning a conference titled, "The Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm: Genetics, Pathophysiology, and Molecular Biology" to be held from April 3 to April 5, 2006 in New York City. Over the past decade, there has been a substantial increase in interest and knowledge in the field of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA). AAA is a disease of maturity, therefore a rapid rise in the number of AAA's causing death or presenting for treatment is expected. This symposium will provide a unique opportunity for epidemiologists, engineers, clinical and molecular geneticists, pathobiologists and surgeons to come together for information exchange, discussion, consensus and the dissemination of ideas. The goal for bringing together a cross-section of leaders in the scientific community is to create a forum where initial informal interactions can lead to collegial joint research efforts. The conference will be organized according to a multidisciplinary approach. The proposed sections are as follows: Epidemiology and Initiatives to Prevent Death from Rupture; Animal Models; Enzymology; and Molecular Biology and Immunobiology in AAA. Half day sessions will cover information ranging from screening and assessment of risk of rupture at different ages and size thresholds, to novel models which are advancing knowledge rapidly in terms of aneurysm pathobiology. Conference discussion groups will also focus on inbred animal strains, which are opening the way to new insights in immunological features of aneurysmal diseases, as well as the field of animal models, which greatly contributes to our understanding of the pathology of matrix destruction. Furthermore, scientists will have the opportunity to share up-to date information about the highly complex pathophysiology for overt expression of AAA, including susceptibility factors and variable genetic backgrounds. Recent approaches such as the search for candidate genes and the methodology of genome wide scanning among AAA families or sibling pairs will be discussed.